Proposal: For my paper I will be research how good grades negatively affect the younger generation through anxiety. The pressure, from parents and or the students themselves, is proving to be detrimental. Recent studies have shown that school related anxiety is on the rise, even leading some students to commit suicide. Schools are intentionally putting emphasis on grades of the students and not their mental health.

Sources:

Dreher, Diane E. Why Are Today’s College Students So Emotionally Fragile? (n.d.). Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-personal-renaissance/201508/why-are-today-s-college-students-so-emotionally-fragile

Background: In this article the author is examining the mental health of college students. The author ultimately comes to the conclusion that college students are struggling with the stresses of college because of how their parents raised them. The author gives examples of what parents are saying/doing that is affecting their children later on in life.

How I used it: I used this source in my rebuttal part of my research paper. I used the authors ideas to acknowledge the idea that college students have bad mental health due to their parents putting stress on them rather than their school.

Eyler, J. (2022, March 7). Grades Are at the Center of the Student Mental Health Crisis | Inside Higher Ed. http://Www.insidehighered.com. https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/just-visiting/grades-are-center-student-mental-health-crisis

Background: This article evaluates the amount of school stress that college students are experiencing. This article uses many statistics to back up the thesis statement. The article focuses on student suicide and what leads them to it.

How I used it: I used the example of three campus suicides at WPI in my definition argument part of the research paper. I used this source in the beginning to show the realness and heaviness of the topic I am arguing.

Feldman, J. (2020, September 1). Taking the Stress Out of Grading. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/taking-the-stress-out-of-grading

Background: The author claims that the current grading system being used is what leads to school stress today. This article analyzes multiple grading techniques. Along with acknowledging the cons of the current system, the author also gives ideas on how to improve upon it.

How I used it: This article was great help in creating the causal part of my research paper. I was able to take different practices and analyze them individually with this sources outline. This article had great insight into the grading system that was used through quotes in my paper.

Hough, L. (n.d.). The problem with grading. Harvard Graduate School of Education. https://www.gse.harvard.edu/ideas/ed-magazine/23/05/problem-grading

Background: This article evaluates the problems with the grading system. The article takes on the notion that “a grade does not define me.” The article argues that it is not the student’s fault, it is the teachers and school’s fault. The author also gives alternatives to the normal grading system.

How I used it: This article references Feldman to defend the authors stance. I quoted Feldman to defend my own thesis on mental health and education. I found that having a teacher and principals view on this topic further supported my stance.

Lukianoff, G., & Haidt, J. (2015, September). The Coddling of the American Mind. The Atlantic; The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/09/the-coddling-of-the-american-mind/399356/

Background: This article discusses the society that college kids are growing up in today. This article suggests that college kids are struggling because of the “wokeness” of todays and that society is giving into them. This author suggests that today’s kids are just softer, and school has not gotten any harder.

How I used it: I used this source in my rebuttal section. The notion that today’s generation is softer is believed to be true in the older generations, so I chose to acknowledge their beliefs. After acknowledging their point of view, I showed them why it was false.

Morgan, Amanda Parrish. (2020, September 2). Is It Time to Reexamine Grading? JSTOR Daily. https://daily.jstor.org/is-it-time-to-reexamine-grading/

Background: This article talks about the school struggles kids face in grade K-12. The article acknowledges how the grading system is a major problem today. The author takes stories for real educators to show how they are trying to help their students.

How I used it: I used Morgan’s quote to support my idea of reinventing the grading system. Morgan writes how teachers are thinking out of the box on how to grade students. I used Morgans quotes combined with other sources to support my thesis.

Neighmond, P. (2013, December 2). School Stress Takes A Toll On Health, Teens And Parents Say. NPR.org; Patti Neighmond. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/12/02/246599742/school-stress-takes-a-toll-on-health-teens-and-parents-say

Background: This article evaluates stress in high school students. The author interviews parents and their children who are students. The article concludes that today’s high school students are stresses about their grades. The article also gives an inside into how parents feel about it all.

How I used it: I used Norahs story from the article to help the reader visualize how grades effect students now a days. I think the use of descriptive words helped the readers understand the stress that is put on students today by the school rather than her parents.

Rutter, Michael Patrick & Mintz, Steven. Higher Education Blogs | Blog U. (n.d.). http://Www.insidehighered.com. https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/higher-ed-gamma/are-today%E2%80%99s-college-students-more-psychologically-fragile-past

Background: This article suggests that stress amongst students is actually dwindling. The author suggests that there is no evidence that anxiety and depression is on the rise in students. The author also suggests that schools are more likely to agree with mental health diagnosis of students due to liability issues.

How I used it: I used this source in my rebuttal section of my paper. I used the ideas of this opponent to acknowledge all viewpoints. I then used deductive reasoning to prove why this thinking is wrong.

Long, C. (n.d.). Are Letter Grades Failing Our Students? | NEA. http://Www.nea.org. https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/are-letter-grades-failing-our-students

Background: This article views what different states are doing in reference to reexamining grades. The article acknowledges that the letter grading system is harming students’ incentive to learn.

How I used it: This article helped me understand that these issues can be analyzed state by state or by the country as a whole. It was interesting to see what different states implemented for their students. I used this source as inspiration rather than quote it directly.

Strauss, V. (2023, November 14). Analysis | Rethinking the way teachers assign student grades. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/11/14/rethinking-way-teachers-assign-student-grades/

Background: This article talks about how the usual grading systems such as 0-100 and letter grading is hurting today’s students. The author acknowledges that it is hard for today’s students to catch up when behind.

How I used it: This article was very informative but repeated a lot of the information I had already found in other articles. I used this source as inspiration rather than quote it directly.